The Space Station

Station

Info

First appearance

Last appearance

Gender

Male

The Space Station is where John Ellicott Chatham lives and works and where Hannelore grew up.[1] The station spins to simulate gravity[2] and has a central free-fall docking hub. It is large enough that residents use golf carts to get around.[3]

Ellicott-Chatham uses Spaceship to shuttle persons from the surface to the station.

The station has a crew of 128, which includes a US Air Force contingent headed by a Major.[4]

A recent t-shirt for sale in the Topatoco online store states the full name of the station is Ellicott Chatham Technologies Clarke Station.

Contents

The station is "run" by an exceptionally powerful[5] AI who is flawlessly polite toward guests and treats Hannelore as an old friend.[6][7]

Like the classic British gentleman, he speaks formally and "never gives inadvertent offense". The AI owns stock in Ellicott-Chatham Technologies worth almost $600 million[8] and is probably the world's richest AI.[9]

Station is responsible for orbital trajectory, atmosphere maintenance, power management, maintenance, communication, sensors, and data processing[10] and has audio/video pickups in the private quarters of at least one of the onboard personnel[8] as well as (presumably) audio-only pickups in the corridors[11] and bathrooms.[12]

Station is his pirate attire

Station was the only "person" who was always there for Hannelore when she was growing up and seems to be a steadier personality than either of her parents. Doctor Case mentions in 2134 that "We went through dozens of dedicated therapists, but Station was the only one who could get through to her at all." Hannelore credits Station with her sanity[13] and Station remains fond of Hannelore.[14]

The revelation as to how much the Station A.I. "helped" Hannelore as she was growing up has led to further speculation over the nature of their relationship.

He would have been the ideal companion for someone like Hannelore; for one thing, unlike the nannies, he never had to sleep. He also could have been an unmatchable entertainer, and an ideal confidant for anything Hannelore could never mention to another human being. In turn, it's possible that she is the only one who didn't treat him as a machine.

The military presence on the station has never been fully explained but they may be there to maintain control over the orbital bombardment system.[15]

Nothing has been mentioned about Station's role in the AI civil rights movement but it's conceivable that it benefited from his financial backing.

With the aforementioned t-shirt available for purchase at Topatoco, it is possible that the Station AI's "official" name is Clarke. Jeph has not specifically stated such in any other outlet, however.